Island in the Sun
by auTumnlove77
Summary: A witches spell goes awry, leaving Elena and Damon stranded on a magical island, where emotions explode and desire ignites. Will the two ever escape? Or will they give into what was always there?
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything…**

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_On an island in the sun  
We'll be playing and having fun  
And it makes me feel so fine  
I can't control my brain  
We'll run away together  
We'll spend some time forever  
We'll never feel bad anymore_

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Elena was warm. Too warm.

She drifted slowly out of her dreams with a small yawn. She just wanted to fall back asleep before her parents came to wake her up for school. She needed as much rest as possible these days. She stretched out on her bed, and frowned a little when she found it to be uncomfortable and hard. Where was her pillow? Elena clutched at her sides, only to find there were no blankets either. Small noises drifted unfamiliarly around her. The small shake of breeze through trees. The swish and roar of water. Cawing of strange birds. Nothing made sense.

She opened her eyes, but was met by a blinding light that forced them closed again. Had she fallen asleep with the lights on? She rubbed her eyes and tried again. She squinted painfully and was able to focus after her vision adjusted. She saw the yellow sun high in the sky, rimmed by white cheerful clouds. What was the sun doing in her room?

She sat up in alarm as her thoughts collected in her head. The world spun around her dizzily. No. This was wrong. She had to be still sleeping. She was sitting on a white beach, small waves rolling up and tasting her feet. The blue water stretched on as far as eye could see, with no land in sight. Palm trees laden with coconuts surrounded her, layering heavier and heavier the farther she looked. Next to her lay a boy, his dark head face down in the hot sand. His clothes were soaked and caked with sand, with small bloody cuts ripped in his jeans. Elena's eyes widened in alarm. She scrambled uncoordinatedly over to him and turned his head in her lap, breathing hard.

Damon. She almost fell back as memories flooded her, and she held her head in pain. Her parents were dead. Nothing was normal about her life anymore. Stefan, her love Stefan, was stuck in a tomb with Katherine, and she was going to die. Only Damon wouldn't let her. He didn't understand. But why was she here? _Where_ was she?

"Damon. Damon. Wake up. Please." She shook his head a little, and slapped his cheeks. Damon groaned softly, but his eyes stayed close. She stroked him gently, and frowned at the slight smile that lit up his face.

"Mmm. Elena…" he sighed. Elena bit her lip, and fought back an involuntary shiver. His eyes fluttered open. "What-?" He looked around slowly. "Where am I?" He looked at her again, and Elena watched mutely as the vulnerability left his eyes and hard walls were built back up. He sat up and cupped her face with his wet, rough hands. "Elena? What happened?" She resisted the urge to rip her face from his restricting hands. He clutched her harder, and Elena almost cried out at the sudden pain. "Elena!"

"I don't know." She said, her teeth clenched in frustration. "Let go of me." She said, her words spurring up a memory of her and Damon at the front of the tomb. She shoved it to the back of her mind, along with the pain and tension it brought. Damon complied, slowly and reluctantly dropping his hands. He looked around again. "I was kind of hoping you would remember."

Damon looked at her shorts and bright tank top. "Honeymoon maybe?" he said suggestively, wiggling his eyebrows. "R & R away from Stefan?" Elena rolled her eyes and ran a hand through her sand caked hair.

"Damon, I know this is hard to understand, but this is serious."

He smirked. "No worries Elena. I can just flash us out of here. Whever here is."

Elena looked uncertainly at the water. "Vampires can swim?"

"I'm pretty sure we're related to mermaids somewhere along the line." He said. "Just hop on my back and I'll-" Damon groaned suddenly. As he was talking, he attempted to get up, but quickly fell back down, clutching his side, eyes shut in pain.

"Damon!" Elena cried, and flopped over to him.

He pushed her away. "I- I'm fine. Just a little sore is all."

"A little?" she questioned. "Here. Let me see." Elena cajoled, tugging at the bottom of his shirt. Her maternal instincts kicked in.

"I'll be fine." He said gruffly. Elena sighed.

"Don't lie to me Damon. You're hurt." She reached for his shirt again, but Damon yanked it out of her reach.

"I'm fine." He growled. "I don't need your help."

"Damon. Come here. I know you're-"

"No!"

"Damon! If you don't get here right now I'll-"

"You'll what?" he asked, a smirk on his face.

Elena looked around quickly. "I'll go in the forest without you." She said, gesturing to the heavy tropical forest behind her.

"Ooh I'm so scared." He mocked sardonically. Elena ground her teeth together, and stomped away. "Aww, come on Elena I was just kidding around." Elena held her head up high and continued walking. "Fine. I'll let you look at the damn wound. God. You're like a stubborn three year old." The last bit was whispered under his breath, but Elena heard it all the same. With a triumphant smile she turned back to Damon.

She lifted his shirt and winced when she saw a long, bleeding cut. It was swollen and slightly purple.

"Like what you see?" Damon asked. His smirk faded when he saw Elena's horrified look. He whistled when he saw the injury. "Woah. Nice battle wound. Why isn't it healing?" he asked curiously.

Elena ran her soft hand over it. "I don't know." She said, worry etched on her face. Damon stood up suddenly, ignoring her squeaks of protest.

"Don't worry. I'm a big vampire. I can take care of it."

"You feel fine enough to get out of this place?" Elena questioned, her eyes searching Damon critically.

"I'm as fit as a fiddle." Damon muttered. "I'm just going to take a quick run around the island and figure out where we are."

"Sure." Elena said, tucking her hair behind her ear. "Be careful."

Damon flashed her a brilliant smile. "When am I not?" He started off, and Elena's eyes slowly widened in horror. "What the-?" Damon said.

"Damon. Stop joking around." Elena said, her light tone underplayed by worry. Damon was running in human speed, confusion obvious on his face.

"I'm not. I can't run…" He circled Elena slowly. He was fast as a fit human could be, but did not possess the inhuman speed that had frightened Elena many times. He finally stopped, hands on his knees, breathing erratic, face flushed. Elena never thought she would see Damon like this. He was always so cool, composed, and indifferent. It frightened her. "Am I not a vampire anymore?" he asked, more to himself than Elena, his voice small. He went up to Elena and bent his head towards her neck, causing her breathing to accelerate quickly. He breathed in dramatically, and then breathed out just as slow. Elena could not stop the shiver as his breath tickled her neck. "Nope." He said, popping the 'p'. "I still want blood. Then why…?" his voice trailed off as he looked around thoughtfully.

Suddenly, Elena's vision tightened around her. The world grew blurry, and all noise faded out, except her own exaggerated slow breaths. "Does…" she swallowed painfully, and tried not to faint. "Does that mean we're stuck here?" Please. Please not have her be stranded on an island with Damon Salvatore. As if her life couldn't get any more worse. It was the 21st century. There had, just had to be a way out of this. She didn't know anything about survival, excepting some Man vs. Wild episodes she watched in pretty much a different lifetime. This couldn't be happening.

She was aware Damon was talking again, but she barely registered the words. "I think so. For now at least." His voice gained an authorative tone. "Don't worry Elena. This thing can't be permanent. First, we'll need to look around and get our bearings here. You ready for a hike?" Elena didn't answer, as the world was still spinning around her as a single thought was carved in her mind.

She was stranded on an island with Damon Salvatore.

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_When you're on a golden sea  
You don't need no memory  
Just a place to call your own  
As we drift into the zone_

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**So this was kind of an experiment to see if I could keep Damon and Elena in character, something I sort of struggle with. How'd I do? If you liked it too, I could continue it. Haha. So drop a line and tell me you your thoughts. Thanks!**


	2. Chapter 2

__

__

_Because when the sun shines we'll shine together_

_Told you I'd be here forever_

_Told you I'd always be your friend_

_Took an oath imma stick it out 'till the end_

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Elena, with a big sigh, plopped down on the soft sand and lay back, staring dully at the bright sky. Damon seemed to notice that she was not following him and turned around confusedly. Elena closed her eyes, trying desperately to clear her hopelessly jumbled mind. She took deep calming breaths. She wasn't stranded on an island with no recollection of how she got there in the first place. She was on a vacation in Hawaii with Stefan, and she was only working on her tan, with no worries of original vampires, or any names that started with D…

"I didn't know you took yoga Elena." the voice was loud and mocking, causing Elena's eyes to jerk open, only to find Damon directly above her, hovering silently over her without touching, his arms on either side of her, holding himself up like he was doing a pushup. Her eyes met blue lighter than the sky above them. Elena, trying to ignore his arm muscles and intimate position, groaned and made moves as to get up. Damon quickly held up one finger. "Not so fast. I like this position."

Elena rolled her eyes and Damon sighed and flopped down next to her, his hands folded behind his head in a relaxed position. "You remember anything yet?" he asked.

Elena shook her head. "Nope. Nothing. You have any idea why we're stuck on this random tropical island?"

Damon chuckled softly. "Nope." The two's eyes met and Elena couldn't stop the smile that grew on her face from the 'what else can we do' look on Damon's face. In response, an involuntary sarcastic smile lit up on his face. What was she doing? Elena sat up and looked away before she did something she would regret.

A dark mood suddenly grabbed a hold of her. "How do I know you're not just faking the whole no power thing to get alone time with me?" The words shot out of her mouth before she could even think. As soon as the stinging words were out she wished she could take them back. But even as she spoke, she felt a strange stir of memory touching at the edge of her mind. Where had she said those words before?

She was in her room with Damon. But that was all that she could remember. In her mind, she could see Damon's smirking mouth moving, but different words were coming out. She jerked back to the present, and Damon's amused face turned to one of anger. "How do you know I even want to be alone with you?"

The words were like a slap in the face. Elena sat, brushing the sand out of her hair. "Oh I don't know." She spat back. "Maybe from every single word you say to me and how you continue to relentlessly chase after me, even though I made it clear I want nothing to do with you?" The words were hurtful, Elena knew that. Maybe she just wanted to see that smirk wiped off his face. If that was it, she succeeded. Damon stared at her without emotion. But Elena knew she had hurt him.

"Look, Elena. I know you hate me. But let's just concentrate on getting out of here, so you can go back to Stefan and ignore me." He stared back out to the impossibly blue sea, his profile tense.

"I never said that. And I know you'd rather be here with Rose." Elena muttered. Damon turned to her, his face of amazed bewilderment. "How about we call a truce? No fighting or anything like that."

The smirk was back on, but it lacked its usual spark and impact. "Elena, we couldn't last 5 minutes without fighting. Even that would be a miracle."

"Let's just try."

Damon nodded, strangely solemn. "All right. Now let's try to get out of here. And don't seem surprised if you suddenly poof out of here. I'm sure witchy's working on getting you back right now. Just don't forget about me." He added. He had no intent of being alone here. "I know your life would be a lot better without me, but it'd also be a lot more boring."

Elena grinned, strangely comforted. Maybe Bonnie would get her off this place. "I won't." she promised.

Damon stood up, and offered his own hand to help her up. Elena accepted it. Then, the two were off on the beach. They were silent at first, walking slowly. Every once in a while, Elena would throw Damon a worried glance. She worried about that large cut on his side, but refused to ask him about it. She didn't need any of his snark, and knew that it would escalate into another heated fight. He seemed fine however, giving her a reassuring smile every time she looked over at him, as if he knew what she was thinking. Still, she walked slower, just in case he really did still hurt.

The sun began to dip lower in the sky, which was slowly becoming darker. The sun was disappearing behind a gigantic almost purple cloud, which Elena was sure wasn't there a second ago. There were no people, or buildings, or ships, or anything that signified life. Not even a piece of trash.

She wiped at her brow, secretly feeling exhausted, though she would never admit that to Damon. Her throat felt like it had been scrubbed out by steel wool, and her whole body was sore and sweaty. After a couple steps, she couldn't take it anymore. "Do you think we could find any water?" she asked, voice slightly hoarse. She hoped it would rain.

Damon stopped and looked over at her. "Oh. Sure. I could use some too." He suddenly narrowed his eyes, confused at what he just said.

Elena smiled, amused. "Vampires need water?" She was learning a lot this trip. "Because, you know, the whole not being able to cross running water thing…"

Damon didn't look amused. "No." He said simply.

Elena caught on, and her smile faded. "You okay?"

Damon seemed puzzled. "Vampires don't need to drink anything but blood. It is our food and water. And yet…" he trailed off in confusion.

"You mean you're not…" she couldn't finish that sentence. It was too strange. "Do you want to test it?" She held out her arm, which sported a small cut. The blood had long since dried, but Elena knew that didn't matter.

Damon looked at her. "You sure?" he asked. Elena didn't trust her voice so she merely nodded. Damon bent towards her outstretched arm, still watching her, as if he expected her to jerk back her arm and slap him. Finally, his soft lips touched her arm in a strangely chaste gesture. Elena still bit her lip. He flicked out his tongue quickly, and pulled back. It was so quick, and yet Elena still felt lightheaded. Focus Elena, she thought.

"So?" Elena asked, with slight trepidation. Damon said nothing. His face twisted into one of disgust. "Damon?" Elena asked, now worried. This boy drove her crazy, and in more ways than one.

Damon finally looked over at her. "I don't know how this happened, but…I'm human."

Elena gaped at him. "What?" she finally got out.

"I didn't like your blood. Didn't even slightly enjoy it, nor did it even slightly satisfy me." He ran a hand through his crazy black hair. "If I was a vampire, even one lick of your blood would drive me crazy." Those intense eyes met her. Elena was blushing; she could feel the heat gathering in her cheeks.

They stared at each other for a long while, but Elena didn't speak until she was sure she could. "What now?" she asked, for lack of anything better. Her mind wasn't really working either. The look on Damon's face was frightening her. He looked…lost. Elena knew Damon enjoyed being a vampire. Loved it, probably. The thrill of drinking blood, and seducing countless women. He lived the same way for over 100 years, and now everything was suddenly pulled out from under him. He now became the thing he killed and degraded for so long. Contrary to Stefan, who Elena knew would do anything to spend a normal human life with her, Damon would never want to become the hunted. Damon didn't answer her. He pulled away from her gaze and walked out towards the ocean, sitting down brokenly.

Elena sighed and went to sit next to him. Maybe she shouldn't be doing this, but she couldn't stand to see him like this. It wasn't Damon. She lifted her hand, hesitated, and then laid it on Damon's arm. He twitched, but stayed silent. "Damon, its fine. As soon as we're out of here, you could always take some…blood from…Rose, and change back." For some reason it hurt to say her name. Before she could help it, an image came to her, one of Damon bending over to Rose's outstretched hand…She tried not to jump when a cold wave hit her legs. After a long pause, Damon turned to her.

"That's not the point. The point is I can't protect you any more Elena. I don't know how long were going to even be stuck here. I won't even be able to protect you if a mountain lion attacks."

Elena opened her mouth to point out the low probability of a mountain lion on an island, but quickly decided that this wasn't the time. Damon was seething. "We'll be fine." She said, giving his arm a gentle squeeze. "The most we'll be out here is maybe a couple days. And besides, I have watched a couple episodes of Gilligan's Island."To her delight, Damon's lip quirked. "Now come on, let's go find some water, food, and shelter." She said. "There are trees here, so there has to be some water somewhere. Unless it rains, but we'll still need something to catch it in." This time, it was her turn to offer her hand, which Damon slowly took. When he stood up, she tried to tug her hand away, but instead Damon grasped it with his other hand.

"We'll make it out of here. I promise." Damon said.

Hand in hand, the two began to walk towards the dark forest. As they walked, it began to rain small cold drops.

Elena had no idea what lay in store for the two. But she did know that she believed him.

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____

________Know that we'll still have each other

__You can stand under my umbrella

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**Short, I know. I also know that this took forever to update. I'm really sorry :/ . It was really hard to write with all this angst and fighting and stuff like that. It almost hurt to write lol. But I finally got it out, and next chapter the fun begins ;) A big thanks to my reviewers last chapter. Please review! Oh and I really have no idea where I'm going with this story, so any ideas will be MORE than welcome. Lol :D**


	3. Chapter 3

_Oh, a simple complication_

_Miscommunications lead to fallout_

_So many things that you wish I knew_

_So many walls up I can't break through_

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It was beautiful. The forest was impossibly green, contrasting sharply against the pure white sand. Palm trees stretched and bended out, just begging to be sat on. Water spilled effortlessly from the canopy of trees from the sky above. Just as Elena was beginning to think about how strange it was that Damon was holding her hand, he let go of it. Elena immediately missed it. Not only was it warm and comforting, but it sent pleasant tingles throughout her.

They walked in deafening silence, Damon's head tilted away from her. _Probably wishing he were anywhere but here with me,_ Elena thought dejectedly. A big drop of rain landed on her nose, waking her up suddenly. What was wrong with her? She should'nt care. But Damon should be trying to take advantage of his time alone with her, doing everything in his power to seduce her. Instead, he wouldn't even look her way. Not even when she got whapped in the face by a giant Elephant Palm tree leaf. Or when she tripped over a root she could've swore wasn't there before.

She couldn't believe that Damon, of all people in this world, was ignoring her. Sure, she usually wanted to stake him to shut him up, or just stake him in particular, but now she needed to hear his voice. To remind her that she wasn't the only person on this island. She was going absolutely mad. Elena was cold, wet, thirsty, and angry. Not a good combination. She considered opening her mouth to catch a stray raindrop, but she felt more self conscious than usual around Damon. Damon specialized in making people uncomfortable, usually by getting right up in their personal space. But now, by not even looking at her, he was making her more uncomfortable than ever.

The silence was deafening.

Elena's head began to pound, and the world began to blur at the edges. She needed to stop. They had been walking for what seemed like hours, and she was sure Damon was exhausted too. Her pride began to fade, and without another step, plopped to the floor. Elena leaned her head against the rough tree and let out a big sigh. Damon still didn't turn, and maybe he wouldn't have, if Elena hadn't seen something that made her let out a bloodcurdling scream.

Elena hated snakes.

The phobia started in her younger childhood years. Matt and Tyler thought it hilarious to lob a rubber black snake at her while she was sitting proudly in a large tree. She was only six at the time, and fell in surprise off the tree, breaking her leg. Ever since then, she shuddered even at the thought of the slithering creatures. Years past and she almost forgot about this. Then came that day where she lowered herself down in the well to save Stefan, unaware what was waiting for her. When she felt the snake brushing past her leg and another curled against her arm, with others shooting towards her, it only awakened that primal fear.

With that history, she found it perfectly reasonable to scream on the top of her lungs and jump on Damon when she saw a small black snake slithering quickly by her feet.

Unfortunately, she forgot to factor in Damon's loss in vampire strength, and the two inevitably fell to the hard jungle floor, Damon on the bottom of Elena's heaving body.

"What's wrong?" Damon asked, completely bewildered.

"I just- I just…snake!" she sputtered, looking around worriedly.

Realization dawned quickly on Damon's face. "You're scared of snakes." He said, smirking.

"What?" Elena looked down onto Damon's face, her eyes widening in embarrassment. "No. I just tripped." She got up gingerly, cheeks burning.

Damon grinned from the ground then winced. "Can you trip away from me next time?" he asked, studying his side apprehensively.

Guilt overtook her embarrassment. She realized he was talking to her again, and was now embarrassingly happy. "Are you okay?" she asked, bending towards him.

He pushed her reaching hands away. "Yeah. I'm just more fragile now." He stood up slowly.

"Yep. You're a delicate flower." Elena said with a smile.

Damon rolled his eyes and dusted off his shirt, which he looked at in distaste. "Such a waste." he muttered, staring at the shredded and stained sleeve.

"There are more important things than your shirt right now." Elena said, simultaneously looking at her favorite pair of converses, which were smudged with dirt and scuffed by the sand. "Like water. I mean, we can't even last a couple days without it."

"Elena. Do you hear that?"

"And we need food too, but we can last a long time without that."

"Elena."

"But Bonnie has to have realized that we're already gone…"

"Elena! Will you shut up for a minute?"

Elena swiveled her head around to meet Damon's amused and excited eyes. "Just listen." He said, with a slight smile. She shut her eyes and opened her senses. The chirping and cawing of birds. That was normal. The splash of rain against flat leaves. Nothing special about that. The cadence and buzzing of bugs. That couldn't be what Damon was so excited about. And then Elena heard it. It was faint at first, but as she recognized it, it became louder. It was a slight crashing and swooshing sound.

Water.

Elena's eyes shot open, the corners of her mouth lifting as she met Damon's eyes, which were narrowed with a knowing excitement.

"Last one there is a staked vampire." Damon challenged.

The two took off, laughing as they ran to the source. Elena felt a renewed energy blooming inside of her as she ran. She pushed at Damon, feeling impossibly giddy. He fell behind her, cursing his human legs. Elena giggled, her hair flying out behind her like a banner. The woods around her began to thin and the ground began to dip down. She gasped and stopped suddenly as she found the source of the water.

"Oh my god." She gasped. It was a waterfall. Water cascaded down from a large rocky bluff and down into a blue pool, which in turn flowed down into a smaller pool. Palms framed it, leaves barely brushing the top of the lake. The rain was stilling and the gray clouds were parting, casting a golden glow on the surreal scenery. Elena took off her sneakers and socks and dipped a tentative foot in the water. It was as warm as bath water.

She heard hard breathing and stumbling footsteps behind her. Elena barely had time to blink before she was grabbed from behind around the waist and pulled into the warm water. It felt phenomenal. Elena opened her eyes underwater to see a smirking Damon, arms still wrapped securely around her. The water was completely clear, so clear she could see fish swimming below their feet. One brushed up against her leg and she squealed silently. Damon laughed, bubbles rising up and tickling her nose.

Suddenly, he stopped and grabbed at his throat confusedly. His eyes began to bug out. Elena rolled her own and pulled him to the surface. Damon took a deep sputtering breath, giving a watery cough. He rubbed at his eyes and grinned. "I let you win." He said.

"Sure you did." Elena smiled, splashing him with water. She ducked underwater before he could splash back and enjoyed the clean feeling. She tugged at her hair and pulled out the sticky sand. When she surfaced for air, Damon was floating on his back, eyes closed and a slight smile on his lips. He was only wearing a black (of course black) wife beater and dark jeans. She supposed he had discarded his button down shirt and shoes somewhere on the shore. Elena considered dunking him under, but he looked so peaceful. And beautiful too, she mused. The sun lit him up and the wet shirt clung to his muscles.

"I know I'm hot but you're kind of creeping me out." He said, causing Elena to jump a little. She rolled her eyes and flipped him over.

"Cocky ass." She laughed as Damon began to swim after her. She felt…free. Like she was full of warmth and light. She hadn't felt this way in so long.

Elena swam towards the waterfall and bit her lip.

"What's wrong?" Damon asked, stopping next to her.

"Will it hurt?" she asked bringing up a hand tentatively to the spray.

"Only one way to find out." Damon said, and pushed her into the full force of the water.

"Damon! What if…ohhh…" Elena let go of a huge breath and her shoulders slumped as the water pounded on her back. "It's like…like… a m-massage…" She sighed happily.

Damon gave her a strange look and shifted uncomfortably. "I give better ones you know." He said, recovering with a wink.

"I-I doubt it." She said with a lazy smile.

"I'll take that as a challenge." He said, excited.

Elena looked a little nervous for a bit, but it got melted away by the spray. "Whatever. Later."

Damon grinned. He wouldn't forget. Elena combed through her hair, unraveling the stubborn knots. She winced, and Damon stared. "Need help?" he asked.

It was Elena's turn to give Damon a strange look. Confusion and regret maybe? "I'm fine." She said finally. "I hope this water was safe to drink." She added, averting her eyes. She pulled herself out of the waterfall.

"It looks like rain water. I think we're fine." He said.

They both climbed out of the pool, ringing out their clothes. Elena shook out her hair, and pretended not to notice that Damon was staring.

Her stomach rumbled suddenly, and Damon laughed. "Hungry?" he asked. His stomach also growled loudly. "It's been a while since that happened." He said thoughtfully. "Hey. Look over there." Elena followed his pointing finger. It was a dirt path, leading through the forest on the other side.

Elena looked at him excitedly. "That could mean people." She said in awe. They quickly pulled on their shoes and jogged over to the path. It was a short walk, only about five minutes.

Soon, the dirt below their feet was mingled with sand. He trees thinned out again and eventually opened up. The beach. They were back on the beach.

Damon frowned. Elena, however, looked up. "Maybe we could eat a coconut." She said.

"We don't have anything to crack it open with."

"We could find a rock or something." Elena amended. She wrapped her hands around a straight palm tree and began to shake it.

"Elena." Damon sighed, studying the path. "That's not a very good…Elena!" He shot forward at the sound of a loud crack. A coconut had fallen on her head.

Elena fell on the sand, sharp pain shooting from her forehead. Stars dotted her vision. A pair of blue eyes was the only thing she saw now. Those eyes looked hurt and worried though, and that bothered Elena.

"Don't worry." Elena said, caressing the face that the eyes belonged to. "I'm fine." She didn't want to cause him any pain. She only wanted him to be happy…

"Elena! No! Stay with me. Elena. Please." When she drew her hand back, it was wet.

"I'm fine..." Everything was fading.

And with that, her eyes closed, and she fell into the cool blackness.

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Bonnie opened the door, feeling extremely strange and apprehensive. Something was wrong. She sighed as she opened her door to her empty house. Everything was wrong. Stefan was still stuck in the tomb with Katherine, the Originals were still looming on the horizon, Caroline was busy with Tyler, and Elena and Damon were gone. Together, she thought with distaste. Still, Damon would never do anything to Elena. Unless Elena wanted him to. She shivered at that thought.

Bonnie dropped her backpack off and turned on the television, plopping on the couch exhaustingly. This was what she needed. Just a couple minutes of normality, of relaxation…

"…one passenger was found alive near the wreck." The TV blared. Bonnie sighed and prepared to change the channel. The news were only depressing. The screen showed a birds-eye view of the ocean. When the camera zoomed in, it showed a small plane, mangled and half submerged in the water. It panned over to show an exhausted African American women being lifted up by a coastguard to a helicopter. Bonnie's hand stilled on the remote. Please no. "The other two passengers are still missing." The picture on the television changed to show two faces. One was of a cocky man, his smile way too handsome to be real, his arm slung around something off camera. He was obviously drunk, his eyes focused on something off camera, probably not even knowing his picture was being taken. The other was of a beautiful, thin girl, smiling brightly in her cheerleading outfit. Bonnie's heart stopped.

"Their names are Damon Salvatore and Elena Gilbert. The search party has just been conducted, and we hope to find them soon. Back to you Bob."

From Bonnie's shaking hand, a remote slipped and fell to the floor with a hollow thump. She took out her phone and dialed.

"Jer…we have a problem…"

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_And we're not speaking_

_And I'm dying to know is it killing you_

_Like it's killing me?_

_I don't know what to say since a twist of fate_

_When it all broke down_

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So…I thought about this story a lot, and I finally know where I'm going. Yay! Next chapter many truths will get revealed, some that were hoped to be never revealed. Lol. And don't worry, I didn't kill Elena, even though I think a coconut to the head could do that. Oh and go to my profile to see what I imagined our couple's water paradise to be. Beautiful, huh? Sigh… Anyway please review.


	4. Chapter 4

This chapter's for you, Drama! ;)

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Swirling colors filled Elena's vision, bright and dancing. Then, the swimming colors coalesced, forming a clear picture.

Stefan.

Elena gasped, a smile forming on her face. Her heart fluttered excitedly. She tried to talk, to tell him that she was okay, and how she missed him, but her mouth wouldn't open. Stefan's whole face was lit up, his eyes sparkling in a way she had never seen before. He must have missed me too, she thought. But then she realized that his eyes were trained on something to the side of her head. Elena turned slowly, and saw something that made her heart drop. Katherine. She watched in horror as her mirror image slowly sauntered up to Stefan. No, she thought. And slowly, Stefan reached out his hand. Just as Katherine's fingers intertwined with his, he turned to smile at Elena. The smile was cruel and triumphant. He shook his head and turned to laugh with Katherine. The two walked off into the shadows, leaving Elena in her silent shock.

The scene melted away. Now, Elena was in her room. She was glaring at a smug Damon, who was laying on her bed, looking too at home. Something in Elena's subconscious told her that this was not a dream, but rather a memory.

"And there's no other way?" Elena asked her voice nervous and angry.

Damon sighed and shook his head. "Look, you don't have to come with me if you don't want to. It will just be easier. And more fun." He added with a wink.

Elena started defensively. "No! I'll go with you. How long will it take?"

"Not long at all." Damon said, rolling off her bed. "We just need to get there and find this witch. She' more powerful than your witch could ever hope to be. I'm on good terms with her too, so she'll definitely help us. Me." Damon said the last part casually, but Elena still felt a pang. "And I know a girl that can hook us up with a plane to the Bahamas."

"Well you certainly get around." Elena muttered, forgetting temporarily about his vampire hearing. Damon grinned. Elena felt something flare up inside of her. "How do I know you're faking this whole no-power thing to get alone time with me?" she snapped, taking a step to him.

Damon raised his eyebrows, amused. "You think Bonnie faked that whole ceremony? I think she learned her lesson on that note. Her friend did turn into a vampire because of it last time." He said looking her deeply in the eyes. Elena tried to take an inconspicuous step back, but she was almost immobile in that gaze. "And besides," he added, cocking his head. "Why would I ever lie to you?" He smirked dryly and went towards the door. "Pack enough for three days. We can call it a vacation."

He started saying something else, but his voice was fading away, along with the scene.

They were on a plane now. It was small, with only three seats. Damon and Elena occupied two, while the third had a middle aged woman perusing a heavy, old looking book.

Elena's arms were crossed across her chest, obviously not comfortable being so close to Damon. Their arms were brushing, and she hated what she was feeling.

"How long is this?" she asked irritably, trying to lean away from Damon without him seeing.

Damon leaned towards her, defeating her not so subtle efforts. "Calm down Elena. We haven't even been up in the air for ten minutes yet." His eyes flashed with amusement. "You know I know a couple ways to make it better…" he trailed off suggestively, but Elena noticed he was only half into it, as if he didn't even expect her to answer.

Elena twitched guiltily. "Damon…" she said half heartedly. She chickened out. "I just don't like the look of those clouds out there." She said, motioning to the small window. Damon looked over her, noting the almost purple clouds, seething and swirling madly. In response, the small plane shook slightly. Elena flinched and gripped the armrest. The lady next to Damon looked up from her book worriedly.

The pilot, an old kind man, turned around from the cockpit. "Okay, put on your seatbelts on now. It's going to be a bumpy ride."

Elena grabbed Damon's arm as the tiny plane shook again. "Do something." She hissed.

Damon raised his eyebrow. "Care to elaborate sweetheart?"

"Well, can't you like use your vampire powers and like- oh." Elena's face fell. Thunder cracked in the background and flashed, lighting up the plane.

"Exactly. And I can't control weather anyway." He said, reaching over to buckle her seatbelt, careful not to touch her.

Elena pretended not to notice. "But can't you make fog?" she questioned, her mind retracing to that day in the graveyard. She knew that couldn't have been natural, or Stefan.

Damon smirked gravely. "That's different." The lady gave them a strange look, then quickly flipped through her book. Damon was turning to say something to Elena when something exploded.

The plane was going down.

Everything seemed to slow down for a minute, and Elena could see everything with perfect clarity. The pilot was screaming into his radio, pressing buttons wildly. The African American Woman was mouthing something silently, her eyes flashing back and forth, like a prayer. Damon seemed completely calm, but his eyes betrayed his horror when he turned over to Elena. His lips were moving, his eyes crucial, but Elena couldn't understand a word. Her heart was in her throat as they tumbled down, wind whipping through a crack in the compartment.

She closed her eyes, not wanting to see any of this. Jenna, Jeremy, Bonnie, Caroline, Stefan…they tried so hard to keep her from being sacrificed, and now she was going to die anyway. Her eyes were calm as she opened them to lock eyes with a frantic Damon. He was shaking her, yelling something. She wasn't scared. Her family and friends would be safe now. Klaus would be thwarted. Even Damon would make it out of this. He may not have his powers, but he was still immortal.

"Help them." She said.

Damon shook his head, and suddenly she could hear. "Elena, don't be stupid!"

The woman was suddenly in front of them, somehow holding both of their hands. "I can save you. I need you to trust me!" The plane jerked forward, but the woman was still standing fine.

"You're a witch." Damon said. He nodded.

The last thing Elena remembered was a flash of golden light before the plane hit the water and the sea came rushing in. Then, the black took her in.

XXXXXXXXXX

"Elena! Elena please wake up! Don't leave me, please." She felt something brush her cheek. What happened? She heard something sob next to her, and the bleak resignation of itt hurt her. She wanted to reach out and comfort this person, but she found she couldn't move.

"Elena, I love you." The soft voice said. She felt her heart soar, and she felt as if she was suddenly bathed in a warm golden light.

She didn't know who this person was, but she did know he was telling the truth. Her eyes opened, just so she could see who he was. Light flooded her vision, but it wasn't painful. She closed her eyes again. She didn't need to see him. She knew.

"I know." She murmured. "I do too."

Everything faded away again, but this time Elena felt more peaceful and content than she ever did in her life.

XXXXXXXXXX

Light. It was beating on her face, bright behind her eyelids. Something cool was being placed on her face. Elena's eyes flickered open, meeting an unfathomable blue.

"Looks like Sleeping Beauty is finally awake." He said, smirking. Elena put a hand to her head, but Damon was holding her back, softly putting her arm back down. "Not a good idea." He said soothingly. "You got hit pretty hard." Elena groaned, and Damon's eyes flashed with worry. "How are you?" he asked quickly.

"I feel like I got hit by a train." She sighed, trying, unsuccessfully, to put a hand to her head.

"It was something like that." Damon said, his laugh a low rumble.

"I had the worst dream." She mumbled.

"Did you find the Wizard of Oz?" Damon asked.

Elena ignored him. "I dreamed that you and I were on a plane and it crashed. But a witch saved us and put us on this island and…" she looked into Damon's sad eyes. "It wasn't a dream, was it?"

Damon shook his head silently. He turned away to get something and Elena sat up. The world spun around her. No. She wanted to be home. She tried to stand up, but dizzily fell back down. Damon was at her side in an instant. "Sit down." He demanded, but Elena pushed him away, using a nearby palm tree to pull her up. She realized she had been lying on a bed of cool palm fronds, next to the calm trickle of the waterfall. She removed the soaked piece of moss from her head, and put her hand to her wound. Damon watched her reproachfully. She felt a small lump on her head, tender to her touch.

"Ow." She said, surprised. Damon started toward her, but she stepped away. "I'm fine. It just hurts to touch."

"Just sit down Elena." Damon said, exasperated. Elena sat, feeling that Damon would push her down if she didn't.

"I remember how we got here." She said. The memory stood out clear in her head, and she quickly recounted it to a dubious Damon. After she finished, she felt like there was something else she should be remembering, something after her memory, but all she could remember was a shining happiness.

Damon frowned. "So Bonnie took away my powers, and we went to the Bahamas to find a witch to reverse it, and to also get Stefan out of the tomb? Sounds sketchy."

Elena sighed. She didn't think it was strange at all. She would fly to Antarctica to get Stefan away from Katherine. She remembered her dream with a shudder. "No, it's true."

Another frown. "So now we're stuck on some magical island in the middle of the Bermuda Triangle? That's just great." He sighed and plopped down on the ground next to Elena. He winced, and Elena looked at him worriedly.

"How's your wound?" she asked.

Damon sighed. "I'm fine Elena. You're the one with an apple on your head." Elena self consciously reached for her bump.

"It's not that big." She said.

"It'll be smaller if you lay down." Damon sang. Elena did not submit. Instead she reached for his shirt and pulled it up.

"Woah, moving kind of fast aren't we? If you want to see me shirtless all you have to is ask." Damon asked, sounding slightly uncomfortable.

"Shut up Damon and stay still or I'll find a coconut for you." Elena warned, her eyes wide at the big wound. "I think we should wrap this up. It could get infected."

"With what? One of us is going to have to go shirtless. I vote you." Elena rolled her eyes, but was glad Damon was back to his sarcastic self.

"Use yours. Didn't you take it off somewhere?"

"Oh yeah." Damon said, disappointed. He reached for it and handed it to her. "My way was more fun."

Elena rolled the shirt and carefully tied around Damon's torso. "There." She said, pursing her lips.

Damon pulled his wife beater back over it, leaving a strange bump. He made a face. Elena groaned again and shook out her hair, pulling out the stubborn sand.

"You feel okay?" she asked, studying him.

"Yeah. It's better." Damon said.

"I think we should try to explore some more. I have a feeling there's something on this island." Elena said.

"It's getting dark out." Damon pointed out, nodding at the setting sun.

"We'll walk fast."Elena said dismissively.

"No." Elena opened her mouth to protest, but Damon was speaking again. "Tomorrow. We need to rest. Besides, we wouldn't to get stuck out there in the dark."

Elena sighed and conceded. The two watched as the sun slipped beneath the sea. The dark slowly crept to them. Bright stars dotted the black sky, forming constellations she had never seen before.

"There's so many." Elena breathed. She rolled her head to face Damon, who was lying in the same position, on his back with his hands below his head. Like some sort of cliché romantic date, she thought with a silent laugh.

The bright moon clearly showed Damon, his eyes flashing in the ethereal light. She thought that he looked even more beautiful than ever, the moonlight dancing in his dark hair. "There used to be more when I was little. Now with all the pollution and lights, you can barely see three at a time."He said. Elena sighed and teared her eyes away to look at the sky. "Whenever I felt overwhelmed, I used to escape outside and just look up. It made my problems feel so small and insignifigant."

Elena couldn't help it; she looked back at him. Damon's eyes were focused above, his expression nostalgic. "Me, too." She said, surprised. "I would sit on my roof after my parents died. It made me feel a little better." She sighed. "But I never thought you were the star-gazing type." She added.

Damon laughed dryly. "More of a Stefan thing? No, Stefan keeps his feet on the ground. He never looks up." Elena's eyes widened at this description of Stefan. "Besides, he couldn't tell a star from an airplane."

Elena rolled her head to look back at the stars.

"You see that?" Damon said quietly, his finger pointing at the sky. "You see those eleven stars that kind of go into that swooped line?" Elena nodded, strangely finding it immediately. "That's me, Scorpio." He said, flashing a bright smile. "A monster, placed in the stars to forever chase Orion." His smile disappeared, his mood now somber.

Elena instinctively placed a comforting hand on his arm. "Scorpio." She muttered. "Figures."

"Well Scorpio is the sexiest of the zodiac." Damon murmured. Elena laughed.

He continued to point stars and constellations out to her, and Elena felt like there was a connection between the two of them. "And that one…that one….one…" he trailed off.

Elena turned to him in confusion, and with a shock realized he was asleep, his eyes closed eyes and breathing peaceful. He frowned in his sleep, and Elena reached over to smooth it out. Instantly his face brightened up, and a small smile crept on his lips. Elena smiled in response, lying back down. She shivered suddenly. The air was cold, the breeze blowing through her thin clothes. She shivered and flipped to her other side, but the cold persisted. She even put a palm frond on top of her in hopes it would warm her up, but to no avail.

She looked over at Damon, who was still looking peaceful, even with his thin shirt. How could he be so warm? His smile had gone away with her touch, but his breathing was still slow. She scooted closer to him, making sure to not make any noise. Damon didn't stir. She scooted closer still, so she was pressed against him. Once there, she sighed in content. He was so warm, his whole body radiating heat. She pressed herself closer, and nearly jumped when Damon threw his arm around her. She made no move to leave, however, she was too content and warm, and her eyelids were already drowsily fluttering. She made a small yawn and closed her eyes.

In the vibrant moonlight where she couldn't see, Damon smiled and drew Elena closer.

XXXXXXXXXX

Oops. I'm horrible. I was trying really hard to finish my other fic, so this one got put on the back burner. And then when I typed it up, I accidently deleted it. Again. I swear my computer hates me. Lol.

Sooo, what do you think? Good? Bad?

And Elena forgot another love confession. Or was it a dream? Lol.

Next chapter I'll try at Damon's POV and how he feels to be human. And our couple finds something strange in the tropical jungle. Haha.

Please review!


	5. Chapter 5

Wow. This chapter took an insanely long time to write. Hope it turned out all right!

XXXXXXXXXXX

Elena sighed as she drifted into consciousness.

Perfect.

She felt warm, strong arms wrapped around her. Everything was warm, and so, so soft. She snuggled deeper into the arms and felt a thrill of appreciation on how perfectly they fit together. His arms tightened in response, and she felt a head burrow into her shoulder. A cool breath tickled her and she shivered when teeth grazed her earlobe.

"Mmm…" she said. She yawned and slowly drifted back to…no.

Elena's eyes shot open. No. No. No. No.

Please let it be a dream. Please be at home, with Stefan…

Palm trees. Waterfall. Blue sky.

Damon was spooning her.

What the hell was she thinking last night? The coconut must have knocked any and all sense out of her head. Stargazing with Damon and then willingly falling asleep in his arms? Not good.

But maybe Damon didn't know. She could get out of this. Elena ever so carefully reached for Damon's constricting arms. He didn't stir. Then, she pulled them back from her waist, trying to unhook them. She smiled. It was actually working; the arm was slowly slipping off, and…

"Good morning sweetheart."

Damn.

Elena flung his arm off and rolled away. "You ass. Self- serving jackass with absolutely no…"

Damon threw his arms up in surrender. "Woah, calm down Angel. We didn't have sex, if that's what you're thinking. I would've remembered." He said thoughtfully.

"You manipulated me." Elena spat, standing up and crossing her arms across her chest and trying to restore some of her lost dignity.

Damon yawned and stretched lazily. "Actually, if I remember correctly, you came to me."

Elena flinched. He did know. "Well I did just get hit in the head with a coconut. I probably couldn't tell what I was doing." Elena defended.

Damon raised an eyebrow. "Sure you did." He said, that insufferable smirk still on his face.

"You're…incorrigible." Elena hissed.

"Ooh using big words now, are we? Have you been reading out of Stefan's diary?" He asked.

Elena scowled and stomped away. "Aw, don't be like that, sweetheart." Damon called after her.

"Don't call me that!" Elena yelled, her hands clenched into fists. God, she wanted to throw something at him.

"I'd say that you woke up on the wrong side of the bed, but I think where you woke up was perfectly right…" Damon started.

"Ugh!" Elena exclaimed, storming into the jungle. Damon chuckled softly and yawned.

He felt fantastic. He had never felt this well rested before, not since he was human. He relaxed under the sun, enjoying the feel of the warmth on his skin. He held up his hand, studying his ring thoughtfully. Then, slowly, apprehensively, he slid his ring off. It came off reluctantly, as if knowing that it was his lifeline. Damon held it in the palm of his hand, running his finger over the blue stone and te words "Pro Infinito". For eternity. It was strange having his ring off without any premonition. He slid the ring into his pocket and basked in the sun, savoring the feel of the light.

He was human again.

Stefan would probably stake himself out of jealousy, Damon thought with a smirk. He knew his brother wanted nothing more than to shed his fangs and live a long happy life with Elena. Have kids with her, and grow old and finally die and be buried under some old gravestone. And now, that was his destiny, without the being happy with Elena.

God, he felt so happy. Every burden and pain that had lived in him so long seemed to have dulled. His other emotions, however, seemed to have heightened. His appreciativeness, his thoughtfulness, his love…they all seemed more acute. The only problem was how to protect Elena now. He frowned at that. For once he was getting what he wanted, even if the timing was horrible.

It was amazing. Damon breathed in deeply, smiling to himself. He felt his own heart pumping solidly under his chest. He felt…light.

And he really wanted a burger.

XXXXXXXXX

Elena sat by the waterfall, wondering if she was over reacting. She studied her reflection sadly, grimacing at how dirty and unkempt she looked. She dipped her hands in the water and threaded them through her hair, smoothing down her chestnut strands. It was boiling, and Elena wanted nothing more than to plunge into the now cool water and forget.

Why couldn't she? Elena dipped her head in Damon's direction, but he was hidden by the towering trees. She would be quick; Damon wouldn't even know. Without another thought she quickly shimmied out of her shorts and pulled off her shirt, discarding and hiding them in a nearby bush. With one last nervous look Elena slipped into the water. She smiled as the cool water soothed her heated body. It was completely refreshing. She submerged herself for a couple more seconds, reveling in the coolness. She quickly scrubbed the grime and sand off her body before popping back up. Elena swiveled her head around carefully, but there was no sign of an amused Damon.

Triumphant, Elena ran out of the water. She pulled her shorts out of the water and struggled to put them on. She let out a breathy chuckle as she reached for her shirt. She was actually going to get away with this.

Elena furrowed her brow as her hand only met cold dirt. She could've sworn she had dropped her shirt right _there_. Panic rose in her throat as she fell to the floor in her desperation, hands flying out and clawing the ground. Nothing. Elena's head shot up as the pieces connected in her head.

Damon.

Red flooded her vision and she slammed at the ground in frustration. How dare he? Even now, she could feel eyes boring holes in her. Instinctively she crossed her arms over her chest and stood up. "Damon! Give me back my shirt you perverted asshole!" Her voice was easily lost in the thick trees. She shivered, suddenly feeling cold. The sun slipped behind a cloud and everything was thrown in shadow. The trees seemed larger and more menacing and a silence descended.

"Damon?" Elena called out, her voice weaker than before. "Where are you?" No response. The world had gone deathly quiet; even the ever present crash of the waves was muffled. A twig snapped nearby, the sound deafening. Elena whirled towards the sound, hair flinging out like a banner. "Damon this isn't funny." She said, her voice underlined by trepidation. Another twig snapped and Elena spun the other way, her heart pounding loud in her throat.

A pair of black beady eyes stared at her.

XXXXXXXXXX

Stefan rubbed his throat, trying to ignore the red hot burn that flamed up his veins. He shifted on the cold tomb floor, trying to find a comfortable position. Katherine watched him, a single eyebrow raised.

"I'm bored." She said finally.

Stefan ignored her and closed his eyes wearily. He heard a melodramatic sigh and felt her slide down next to him. "Are we not going to talk at all now?" Stefan didn't respond and he felt a hand dance delicately on his chest. Stefan's eyes snapped open and he slapped the hand away. Katherine smirked like a little kid finally getting attention. He rubbed his face tiredly and leaned back against the wall, eyes closing. He felt cool fingertips tip his chin up and he opened his eyes again. Katherine's large brown eyes met his. "I don't know why you're trying to resist, Stefan. Remember when if you wanted something, you just took it? Whatever happened to that Stefan? He was a lot more…fun." With the last word she leaned in closer. Stefan flinched and flashed to the other side of the room.

Katherine followed his movement and shook her head slowly with a tilt of her lips. "Damon has exactly what he wants: Elena and you out of the picture. "What's stopping you from doing what's inevitably happening out there?"

Stefan's jaw set. "I trust them."

Katherine's slow laugh filled the tomb, echoing cruelly off the stone walls. "Are you really that stupid? Or are you just ignorant? Damon will do anything to get her. And Elena has feelings for him too. It's impossible not to see the…chemistry between them. Kind of like what we have. Who knows what they're doing now? Elena's bound to be lonely."

"No. Damon…Elena would never." He said, voice wavering only slightly. Katherine noticed and pounced on it.

"Are you sure? Elena's not as goody goody as you think she is. And you two are broken up, now." She continued, stalking towards Stefan. With an enraged growl, Stefan walked out of the room. "You can't run from the truth, Stefan." Katherine taunted, a smile curving on her lips.

There was no answer and Katherine rolled her eyes angrily. Stefan had refused the bait again. Even after she planted that hot dream in his head. He'd come around eventually, Katherine decided. And they'd have an eternity to do it.

Deeper in the tomb, Stefan took deep soothing breaths. He couldn't let Katherine get in his head like that again.

"Stefan." Katherine said. She was leaning against the tomb wall, her expression inscrutable.

"Leave, Katherine. What else could you want? You already made my life hell." Stefan said, clenching his jaw.

Katherine studied him thoughtfully. "I'm not sorry about that, Stefan." She stated calmly. Stefan opened his mouth but she continued. "But I do love you." Stefan sighed. "I know what you're going to say, that you hate me. But I know that somewhere inside of you is the person that loved me 145 years ago. The person that died for me. That wanted to spend the rest of his life with me. You just need to stop burying it back down. I …miss him." The last part was whispered. Stefan stared at her, at a loss for words. Katherine looked down.

A clear but scared voice jerked him out of his confused thoughts.

"Stefan?" the voice called. "You in there?" Stefan could almost laugh. Where else could he be? He quickly flashed to the entrance of the tomb, Katherine close behind. He peered into the darkness and made out a blurry shape. It was Bonnie.

"Bonnie?" he asked, surprised. "What's wrong?" He could sense it in the almost palpable tension in the air.

"I have some bad news."

XXXXXXXXXX

Damon knew something was wrong. He cursed himself for ever letting Elena stalk off like that. He should've known she'd get herself into some kind of trouble. He ran into the dark forest, hating how slow and clumsy he was now. He tripped over roots and rocks, but kept going. He let out a sigh of relief when he saw Elena and standing and fine, but froze when he saw how she was still. Her mouth was slightly ajar, and her eyes were trained confusedly at something in the distance.

"Elena?" he asked, grabbing her arm nervously. "What's wrong?" He followed her gaze and his mouth dropped.

A monkey. Holding a shirt. It was a monkey holding a shirt. More specifically, Elena's shirt.

"A monkey has your shirt." He commented stupidly. Honestly, what else could you say? This was absolutely crazy. "That is one horny monkey."

Elena blinked and let out a surprised laugh that made Damon's chest swell a little. He was glad she wasn't still mad. "Apparently." She said, turning to Damon. "Eyes up." She commanded, but Damon took his time returning his eyes to her face. He enjoyed the blush that tinted her cheeks.

Fate just loved to torture him. Here he was trying to be the better man and give up Elena, but then Fate drops them both on some deserted magical island with a shirtless Elena. He really needed a drink.

"So…how do you plan on getting it back? If you don't want to, that's fine with me…" Damon said, cocking his head at the small thief. It cocked its head back at him.

Elena gasped. "It's copying you!" She said amazedly. Damon and the monkey both turned to look at Elena.

"Hold still." She said. "I'm going to try and grab it back."

"Good luck with that."Damon muttered. Elena took a measured step forward.

"I didn't even know there were monkeys on this side of the world." Elena hissed, eyes never leaving the thief. Damon rolled his eyes. With a wild grab, Elena dashed forward suddenly, reaching for her shirt. At the last minute the monkey swung away, climbing up and away from Elena's grasp.

"Damnit!" Elena cried.

"Oh no. That's too bad."Damon sighed, smirking. Elena turned to glare at him. "Here." He conceded, pulling off his wife beater."You can wear this."

He handed it to Elena, who grabbed it gingerly. "Oh. Um…thank you." She gave him a grateful look and slipped it on. It was a little big, but it was warm and covered her up. "How's your cut doing?" she asked, clearing her throat. She tugged lightly on his makeshift torquinet.

Damon shrugged nonchalantly as she lifted. "It feels better." He said. Elena ripped the rolled up shirt off and Damon winced.

"Sorry ." she said. "Not really a registered doctor here."

"I've noticed." Damon quipped. Elena laughed and dipped his shirt in the nearby water. She pushed him down in a laying position and kneeled over him. Damon winced again as she carefully pressed the cool wet cloth to his torso. Elena dabbed at the cut, wiping away dried blood and pus. Damon watched her process warily.

"How are you doing?" Elena asked, her eyes still fixed on his wound. "Being…human and all."

Damon blinked, clearly thrown off his track. "It's…different." He said finally. Elena glanced at him before returning to her work.

"Damon. We're friends. You can tell me these things."

Damon breathed heavily through his nose, trying to ignore how cool and perfect Elena's fingertips felt on him. "It is different." He rolled his eyes upward, trying to find the right words to sate Elena's curiosity. "Indescribable." He finally decided.

Elena's hands stilled and he took a big breath of air. "You look happy." She observed thoughtfully.

Damon unconsciously lifted a hand to his face, where his lips were quirking. "Well that's strange because I'm not a very happy person." Damon said, purposely frowning exaggeratedly.

Elena smiled softly. "You're warm, too." She said, lightly pressing down her hands. As Damon watched, she lightly dusted her hands over his chest, eyebrows furrowed in concentration. Damon was soundless and held spellbound. Her hands came to rest near the top under his left shoulder.

Over his heart.

Her smile widened brightly as it thumped quickly under her touch. Damon hoped she didn't notice how it was speeding up marginally. Her hands suddenly lifted and descended down to caress his cheek. "You're blushing." She whispered in awe. Hell no. He was. Damon could feel the blood rushing to his cheeks. He averted his eyes from her burning gaze.

"And you're growing a beard." Elena laughed, abruptly and thankfully changing the subject. Damon chuckled and jokingly rubbed his chin on her hand. Elena jerked her hand back and slapped him playfully. "Ow! Damon! Well, now that you're human and all I can totally kick your ass." Elena said, helping Damon up and tying his shirt back on.

"Oh, really now?" Damon asked, an eyebrow raised.

"You heard me." Elena said, meeting his stare steadily.

"Oh well, I'm just going to take your scrawny ass and…" Elena gasped and tried to run away but Damon easily grabbed a hold of her and lifted her up on his shoulder.

"What?" she giggled. "Damon! Put me down!"

"I don't think I will." Damon said, giving her a little bounce.

"Damon I'm-" Elena's protests were cut off by a loud and long growl. She and Damon both froze and looked down. "I think the humans have to eat." Elena said, grinning. Then, her brow furrowed and the smile dissolved. "I don't think there's anything _to_ eat." She added.

Damon sighed and put her back down. "Well here are our choices. There's sand, leaves, that ant, or the monkey. Yeah that's pretty much it." He gave her a crooked smile.

"How about my coconut?" Elena asked.

"You mean the thing that almost killed you?" Elena nodded. "Let's eat." He said.

They shared a smile and went back to the beach to retrieve the coconut. Elena cradled the green fruit in her hands. "Now what?" she questioned.

Damon took it from her and shook it thoughtfully. "I have no idea."

XXXXXXXXXX

"Bonnie? What's wrong?" Stefan asked, panic rising in his throat.

"It has something to do with Elena I'm sure." Katherine commented from behind him. Stefan's eyes never left Bonnie's face. She gave a choked sob.

"Bonnie…" he said. His voice was calm but inside everything was falling apart.

"It's Elena." Bonnie finally spat out, holding a hand to her mouth. "She's dead."

XXXXXXXXXX

So I have a question for you guys. I wanna write a new story, but I have two ideas and I'm not sure which one to do. And I'm not doing both cuz then I'll just be overwhelmed and very confused lol. Okay so here we go! Oh and my summaries are really sucky, so bear with me :)

Fields of Gold: AH AU. Damon Salvatore has it all: money, fame, and women. But one day he goes too far and his dad takes him to his friend on the Gilbert farm to live. Elena must now reluctantly teach the spoiled womanizer about the real world and the meaning of hard work and love. Will possibly have- Fairs, rodeos, cows, barley, and cliché fun country stuff. Lol!

Or…

Untitled: AH AU. Elena, an aspiring journalist and songwriter, is the sister to the famous drummer Jeremy. When his band starts its first world tour, Elena tags along to keep an eye on her brother and to write a good story to jumpstart her career. What she didn't count on was the bands lead singer and womanizer, Damon Salvatore, trying to seduce her across the world. Will possibly have- Lots of music and characters singing to each other in a Glee kind of way. Lol. And bromance! :D And delena across the world. Lol. Other band members may include Stefan and Tyler. Lol.

So yeah! Which one do you like? Farmer!Damon or Rockstar!Damon? Lol. Or neither, idk. I already have like half the first chapter typed up for both, but I'm sketchier on the second one. Oh and please don't steal the ideas lol. That would really suck. So hit me up in the reviews! Thanks!


	6. Chapter 6

Elena was losing her mind.

She never spent that much time alone with Damon, let alone a whole day. Just a couple minutes with him and she was ready to tear her hair out at the roots. Damon always had that strange effect on her. While Stefan seemed to calm her down and numb her feelings, Damon seemed to heighten every feeling inside of her. He made her want to do anything, spontaneously, without considering the consequences. She felt like she was balancing on a teetering edge while everything was spinning wildly around her. She honestly had no idea what to even expect anymore. One minute he was promising to help her and the next he was completely ignoring her. And barely an hour later he was back to his sarcastic quips. God, she needed Stefan. She needed his comforting arms wrapped around her. She needed that sense of security and safety he always seemed to bring with him. She needed that, especially now, when the world seemed to be slipping through her fingers.

"Why won't this thing open?" Damon hissed. Elena reluctantly swung her big eyes on him. He was still shirtless, and it was exceedingly hard not to ogle. He was clutching the stubborn coconut in one hand and bracing himself on the ground with the other. With a grunt, he quickly brought the fruit down to a pointed rock buried in the soft ground. He studied it, groaned, and flopped down in the dewy grass. "It didn't even crack when it fell on your thick head so this thing probably won't ever open." He sighed, rubbing his forward wearily.

Elena leaned back on a palm tree and unconsciously raised a hand to her head, which was still a little tender. Her temper flared up unexpectedly. "Well I would try it on your head, but it's probably too hollow to do anything." She winced slightly as the caustic, venomous words left her mouth.

Damon sat up and looked over at her with hurt filled eyes. "Ouch. What did I do?"

Elena wanted to spit back another sarcastic remark, but something on the ground caught her eye. A stone. Elena bent over and picked it up, turning it over thoughtfully in her hand, the pointed edge scratching her palm lightly. "Give me that." She mumbled, grabbing the coconut from him. Then, carefully, bracing the coconut against the rock on the ground, brought the stone down violently. With a wet thud, a piece of the skin came off the fruit.

Damon's eyebrows rose. "I loosened it up for you." He said, making Elena laugh dryly. He was such a kid sometimes. She whacked it again, and this time the rough, brown bark was exposed underneath. A couple minutes, hits, and curses later she had a good sized hole in it.

"Bottoms up." She said, and tipped it to her mouth. "Oh, god." She pulled a face as the liquid worked its way down her throat. "That's the stuff." She handed it to Damon, who took it warily. He shrugged and downed the rest.

"Damn. That tastes bad." He said, grimacing.

"Nothing like a pina colada." Elena agreed.

"More like dirt." Damon said.

They shared a smile.

And it was that, just that small simple thing, that had Elena feeling like she was pushed of the edge again.

XXXXXXXXX

Bonnie lifted her eyes to Stefan, willing him to understand. But all that was on his face was confusion and a sickening shock. He didn't believe her. She couldn't do this. All she wanted was to crawl back into her bed and forget all of this.

It was all her fault.

It was all her fault that Caroline died and inevitably became a vampire. It was her fault that Elena left like that and died. Heavy guilt settled between her shoulders. She was killing everyone she cared about.

She choked back a sob. Stefan had to know, for Elena.

"So my little doppelganger went to get herself sacrificed?" Katherine asked, studying her nails.

Bonnie bristled. How could Katherine be so aloof, so…_cold_, when Elena had died? She wished she had a long stake so she could jam it through that unfeeling heart.

"Bonnie? What really happened?" Stefan asked. Bonnie saw a small spark of hope in those green eyes. She would have to put it out.

"It all started…when we decided we had to trap Elena in her own house. Damon suggested that I do a spell similar to the one keeping you in the tomb, just modified a bit. So…I did. Damon was with me as I was preparing for it…and we fought. It was worse than usual…" Bonnie closed her eyes as she temporarily returned to that fateful day on the porch, to all the angry words exchanged. "I said something that even I admit was bad…and he snapped. He vamped out and pushed me against the wall…and I got really mad. I didn't think, I just said a spell."

"What spell?" Stefan asked as Bonnie hesitated. Even Katherine looked interested now, her eyes lit up and an eyebrow raised as she looked at the downcast witch.

Bonnie looked up. "A spell to take away his powers." She swallowed. "He was as weak as a human, and I think there were side effects. He wanted to turn back, but I refused. So…he and Elena left."

"See Stefan? I always knew the two would run off together." Katherine said smugly.

Stefan completely ignored Katherine, his eyes still riveted on Bonnie's in worry and anxiety. "Left?" he questioned.

"They went to go find another witch. Damon knew one in the Bahamas, and he didn't want to leave Elena alone. He didn't trust her…or me." Bonnie cast her eyes down again in shame. She didn't want to see Stefan's face as she got to the worst part. "They left and said they'd be back in a couple days. And I didn't care. I was mad at Damon and I was mad at Elena for going with him. They left on a small plane and…it crashed. I saw it on the news and only one person made it out, and it wasn't Damon or Elena. They didn't find their bodies so I still had hope. I tried a tracking spell, but it didn't locate her. Which means one thing. I still didn't believe it. I took something of hers and went in a trance, and…I saw her." Bonnie put her hand up, silencing Stefan's excited protests. "She was lying on a beach, bleeding." Without restraint a few tears made a way down her face. She looked up at Stefan and couldn't look away. "Dead."

"No." he whispered, his voice raw. He slammed against the invisible wall, his eyes desperate. "No. No." Bonnie took a step back.

"Stefan, I'm sorry…"

"No! This is your fault, Bonnie." His voice was loud, maniacal. Bonnie gasped. Then, his knees buckled and he slid to the floor. She watched as the light in his eyes flickered out. "She's gone." He said, his voice lost.

Katherine rolled her eyes dramatically. "Oh, boo-hoo. Our dear beloved hero is dead. Is the world desolate and raining outside?"

Bonnie glared at Katherine, not bothering to hide her undeniable hatred. "You cold, selfish, unloving bitch!" She started towards Katherine, with full intent of strangling the heartless vampire.

"You really are all stupid." A proud voice boomed.

The three of them turned. Katherine recoiled and Stefan just sighed. Bonnie stopped and gaped.

Elijah.

"It's obvious, really. Elena isn't dead."

XXXXXXXXXX

Elena sat, chewing thoughtfully on a sliver of coconut meat distastefully.

Damon swallowed and grimaced. "Not exactly what I expected my first meal as a human to be."

Elena gave him a sympathetic look and sighed. "I'd do anything for a burger right now." She said, smiling.

"No pickles?" Damon asked.

She chuckled. "No pickles." Their eyes met and Elena felt a sudden and persistent urge to do _something_. She stood up and brushed off the dirt and sand. "Are you ready now?" she asked stiffly.

Damon rose an eyebrow. "What?"

"We're going to try looking around more, remember? Come on, we're losing daylight." She said briskly.

Damon groaned. "Aw, hell." He stood up and followed a quick Elena back into those damn woods. "Trees, trees, and look at that. More Trees. What a surprise."

Elena tilted her head so he could see her roll her eyes. "This island can't be totally deserted. That witch wouldn't do that."

"Wouldn't she? I seem to have a terrible history with witches."

Elena sighed and ignored him. They walked in silence for the next few minutes, only broken up by Damon's loud stumbling and curses.

"What the-"

Elena spun around, exasperated. "Damon. Will you seriously shut the hell- oh my god…"

Damon's whole body was tense, his eyes strained upwards. "Elena?" he asked, taking a step forward.

"No!" she whispered harshly. "Don't make any sudden movements."

"Elena. Is there something on my head?" Damon asked quietly.

"Yes. Now don't move." She ordered.

Damon looked up nervously. "What the hell is it?" he hissed.

Elena's eyes didn't move from the top of his head. "Shh. I'm going to grab it."

"Grab _what_?"

In a sudden motion, Elena shot forward, her hands out. Damon did what came instinctively for him: he ducked. He felt something clawing at his head and his eyes grew wide. He held out his hand and stopped Elena, who was breathing hard.

"Damn…monkey…" she spat, eyes trained on his head.

"What?" he asked. He put a hand to his head and met fur.

"It's the monkey that took my shirt. It's on your head." She said, still breathing hard.

Damon was dumbfounded. "Why?" He carefully unhooked the monkey's hands from his hair and pulled it off. He studied it thoughtfully. It was small, with a tiny black face framed by fluffy tan hair. He smiled. "It's actually kind of cute." He said. The monkey chattered back at him.

"Cute? That thing stole my shirt!"

Damon pouted and the monkey scrambled up his arm and settled on his shoulder. "I think it likes me." He said.

"Get rid of it, Damon!"

"I think I'm going to keep it." Damon said fondly. The devil monkey gave Elena a toothy grin.

"Oh god, no." Elena said. "Damon, why?"

"One, because he annoys you." Elena glowered darkly. "And two, because he likes me. Usually animals run away from me."

"I can see why." Elena muttered. "Fine, then. Keep it. Let's just keep going." Damon and the monkey both smirked at her. Elena could feel a headache forming.

"I think he's like me in some ways." Damon was saying from behind her. "He likes to annoy you. I mean, he even stole your shirt. That's a good one. Very nice."

"Yes, you're definitely just like a monkey." Elena muttered. She pulled back a palm frond and let it go, smirking as she heard the satisfying whap and curse.

"Really Elena? If I didn't know any better I'd say you're jealous."

"Oh, yes, Damon. I'm insanely jealous of the monkey sitting on your shoulder right now. I'm dying inside." Elena sighed melodramatically. Being with Damon for so long was seriously taking its toll on her. She looked back to see Damon and that monkey she had mentally christened Demon exchanging glances.

"That's what I thought." Damon said. He and Demon laughed.

Elena sighed and trudged forward. As she walked, her thoughts wandered to Stefan. She wondered if he even knew where she was going. A pang of guilt hit her. She wanted to tell him, but Damon had refused. But there had to be something here. A person, a house, something. Her mind refused to believe that she could really be alone with Damon. She couldn't be. The trees seemed to close in all around her, breathing heavily and whispering secrets. She had to get out. She started forward desperately stumbled over a huge root. She composed herself and kept forward. To her intense relief, the overwhelming green started to thin out again.

She heard thundering footsteps behind her and watched as Damon came to halt beside her. He whistled loudly. "Wow."

They stood in front of a mammoth cave, its giant, gaping mouth seeming to grin at them. A pressing darkness exuded from it. Elena shivered and wrapped her arms around herself.

"Stay here. I'll go check it out real quick." Depositing a reluctant Demon at her feet and without giving her time to protest, Damon disappeared into the heady darkness.

"Damon!" she called. Demon hopped up and down nervously. She would give him forty-five seconds before coming in after him.

A sudden, cold fear gripped her. What if he never came out? What if she went in after him and couldn't find him? Elena's heart sped up and she crept closer to the hole. What if it collapsed on him? She ran her hand over the cool stone on the side. It seemed sturdy enough. "Damon?" she yelled out again. His name echoed through the cave. No response. With a big breath to steady herself, she prepared to run in. But before she could, Damon's dark head appeared from the black. Elena felt the air whoosh out of her in relief.

As he walked out, she noticed he had his hands behind his back.

"What'd you find?" she asked curiously and a little breathlessly. "People? Food?"

Damon grinned. "Better."

He swung his hands out, revealing two large, brown bottles. "Booze."

XXXXXXXXXX

A/N: *Shudders* I hate caves. Creepiest things ever. :P Have any of you tried raw coconut before? Yuck. Anyway, sorry for the long wait, but it's been a crazy last couple of weeks. Thanks for all that reviewed last chapter! Fields of Gold won, which is good, since it was my favorite. I already had the first chapter typed up but a virus infected my computer and I lost it :(. So it might be a while before it comes out. But we'll see. Oh! I'm a beta now, so go check out Tw-Erdbeerchen 's story The Right Guy. It's really sweet and fluffy. And anyone else feeling terribly excited and anxious for this week's episode? Something bad is going to happen. But thank God the hiatus is almost over. It was drying up my muse. So review and tell me your thoughts. You guys wanna see a drunk Damon and Elena? I do. ;)


	7. Chapter 7

"You've got to be kidding me."

Damon smiled cheerfully and swung the unmarked bottles up. "Nope." He said simply. He started to whistle a jaunty tune.

Elena grimaced. "You found alcohol in the cave? That's it? Not even a match? What exactly is in there?" she questioned rapidly. It all seemed unbelievable.

Damon brought one of the bottles to his eye and peered at it excitedly. "Go look for yourself." He said distractedly. He unscrewed the bottle and sniffed at it appreciatively. Elena wrinkled her nose in disgust and without hesitation, strode confidently into the cave. The icy black eagerly took her in and swallowed her. Elena involuntarily shivered and wrapped her arms around herself in an effort to bring comfort and warmth. The bright world behind her abruptly disappeared. The darkness around her was absolute. It was nothing like she had ever been in before. Even in the darkest nights there was some flicker of light, some reflection of the moon. Here, there was nothing.

She took a few stumbling steps further into the unknown. Her foot hit something and she recoiled back. Fumbling blindly, her hands tensed to touch anything, she groped at the ground. Her outstretching fingers almost immediately wrapped around the cold neck of a bottle. Of course. She groaned loudly and pulled back up, wishing desperately for a light.

As she continued to cautiously advance, her prayers were answered. It was dim at first, but as Elena stepped closer, it grew in intensity. It came from a hole in what she supposed was the ceiling of the cave. It filtered in lightly and cast a light glow in the rocky room. Elena gasped at the sight. She was in the middle of a round room, surrounded by a couple of beat up crates. Whiskey bottles, some empty, some not, were scattered haphazardly on the floor. What could this all mean? Did some sort of alcoholic live here?

"Hello?" she called out, feeling hopelessly idiotic. _Hello_. Her voice echoed hollowly, sounding more and more unsure. The only answer was a sporadic and eerie dripping, along with her own echo. _Hello_.

"Hello." Elena jumped a foot in the air as warm breath caressed her ear.

"Congratulations." She gasped, a hand to her heart. "You've successfully given me a heart attack."

Damon smirked, the dim light playing on the planes of his face. "You were taking a long time. I was worried you got carried away by bats. So, what do you think?"

Elena knelt by a dirty and beaten up crate. "It doesn't make any sense." She muttered, exasperated.

"Alcohol rarely makes sense. You just go with it anyway." Damon said, pulling up another bottle and grinning.

"But really, why-"she paused as she yanked off a plank of wood of the crate, grunting with exertion. "Would this even be here? There has to be someone living here. Someone who won't appreciate you stealing their drinks."

Damon pouted. "Says the girl currently destroying that poor crate," he pointed out.

"Well, this is life or death. Sort of." Elena muttered. She reached in and groaned, pulling out a bottle of wine. "Great."

Damon snatched it from her. "Mmm. Bordeaux. Saint Emilion, too. Very nice. Care to sample it with me?" He raised his eyebrows and Elena had a sudden image of her and Damon sitting in the moonlight wearing fancy clothes, both sipping at velvety red wine. She shook herself, alarmed. She desperately tried to substitute Stefan in that picture, but it somehow didn't fit.

"The last thing I need," she said, her voice shaking slightly. "Is to get drunk here with you."

Damon scooped up another bottle. "Why not? If we're going to die we might as well be drunk. We could always pay this guy back later. He does have incredible taste." He gave Elena a slight push and the two made their way out of the strange cave. Elena sighed happily as the light hit her face. Damon dumped more bottles at their feet.

"Damon, stop fooling around. We need to get back." The thought seemed to echo in her head. "We need to get back." The force of the situation hit her. "What will Stefan think? Jenna, Jeremy?"

"Maybe that we ran off together." Damon offered.

"No one knows where we are." Elena continued, starting to pace. "Bonnie's the only one that knows we even left. What if Klaus came and that's exactly what he thinks? He'll kill everyone I love."

"Elena-" Damon began, grabbing for her.

She shook him off. "I wanna go home. I wanna be with Stefan. I miss him. I don't need any of this!"She was practically screaming now, and Demon scampered away in fear. Damon grabbed her arms and steadied her, looking her straight in the eye.

"Elena. Calm down. There's nothing I can do right now. All we can do is wait." There it was. The straight truth with no sugar coating, no pampering. Elena's breathing slowed. "And, well, we might as well have fun with it." He motioned to the bottles.

Elena sighed and sank to the floor, bringing a surprised Damon down with her. She grabbed one and studied it thoughtfully. "Alcohol on an empty stomach in the morning? Never a good idea."

"Its 5'o clock somewhere."

Elena sighed and dropped it. "We should go back to the beach. I'm going to try and make a fire," she said. The two quietly retraced their way back to the beach, their starting point, thanks to Damon's Indian trail of broken branches and overturned rocks.

"I'll be back," she said. Honestly, she just wanted to be alone. Damon nodded understandingly and she left. From the brush, a reluctant Demon popped out.

"I guess it's just you and me now." Damon sighed. Demon loped over and sat next to him. "Do you think she'll ever come around?" he asked, leaning back. Demon cocked his head. "And I'm talking to a monkey. What a sad, messed up world."

XXXXXXXXXX

Elena bent over to pick up a branch and some fuzzy stuff she was sure helped to make fires. She felt so overwhelmed, and it was hard to remember that she had only been here one day.

What was taking Bonnie so long? Was it really that hard to magic her out of here? Elena breathed heavily and pinched the bridge of her nose. The offer of becoming drunk was becoming more and more enticing. No.

She didn't need Bonnie. She could herself out of this damn mess. And first, she needed a fire. A big fire, one that could tip off someone, on the island or in the sky. But something in her subconscious told her this wasn't possible. That they were beyond the reach of any regular help. She couldn't give up. She wouldn't.

_What's the point?_ A nasty voice whispered in her head. _Surviving just to get killed?_

Elena ducked her head and finally let a hot tear escape.

For that she had no answer.

XXXXXXXXXX

"Elijah." Katherine hissed. Stefan stood in front of her protectively.

"What? You're supposed to be dead. And where is she?" Stefan asked.

Elijah smirked. "I'm not so easily killed. And your girl is currently somewhere on a tropical island with your brother."

Shock rippled on Stefan's face. "What?" He expected a snarky response from Katherine, but she stayed curiously silent.

"Yes. She's doing _perfectly_ fine."

Stefan's fists clenched and Katherine grabbed at his arm, surprisingly soothingly.

"What are you talking about? I…I saw her and she wasn't…fine." Bonnie said, her mouth set in an indignant line.

Elijah barely registered her. "Your powers are weak, little witch. I think I know what I'm talking about."

"How…" Stefan began.

"I think we should concentrate more on trying to get her out." Elijah interrupted.

"But how do you know all this?" Stefan continued. Katherine hissed behind him.

Elijah just raised an eyebrow. "I have my sources. Do you want to rescue your damsel in distress or not?"

"She's with Damon?" Stefan prodded. Katherine's grip on his tightened, as if trying to cut him off.

"Yes. She is with your brother."

"Then she's safe." Stefan conceded, looking relieved. "He promised."

"More than safe, in fact." Elijah added, looking smug.

"What do you want?" Stefan asked darkly, his brow furrowed.

"Unfortunately, I need your help. More specifically, Bonnie's." Elijah elaborated.

"Me? I thought you said my powers were weak." Bonnie said, her fire back in her hazel eyes. Stefan's mouth involuntarily twitched.

Elijah seemed unfazed. "Maybe. But with my witch, you can do anything. Including getting your friend back."

"So you can sacrifice her?" Bonnie asked, her teeth bared.

Elijah chuckled. "So we can kill Klaus."

An invisible tension fell upon the people in the tomb as they all pondered this. Katherine's arm slipped from Stefan's as she took a step further into the tomb.

"Ah, Katerina. I almost didn't notice you there. Why is your pretty mouth closed?" Elijah asked. Still, no response came from Katherine. Elijah's sinister smile widened. "So?" he asked, directing it to a still thoughtful Bonnie and Stefan.

"I'll do it." Bonnie said. Elijah clapped his hands together, but Bonnie held up a warning finger. "If you let Stefan out of the tomb."

Elijah now turned questioningly to Stefan. "That is a big offer. You are getting the most out of this deal." Bonnie stayed tight-lipped and determined. Katherine looked horrified. "Fine," he relented. "I will be here tonight at the full moon to set you free. We have a deal." He held out his hand. After a moment's hesitation, Bonnie clasped it and shook. "Goodbye, my Katerina." Elijah was gone.

After a second Bonnie hesitated and started up also. She turned around, her face filled with regret. "I'm sorry." She said. And then she was gone.

As soon as she left, Katherine transformed. "Are you stupid?" she demanded, pushing Stefan against the wall, her face red with fury. "You just made a deal with an original. You might as well just have signed out your soul to the devil."

Stefan looked calmly back at her, at the anguish in her eyes. "It's Elena." He said.

Katherine looked away. "It always is. You'd do anything for her. You'd kill yourself, wouldn't you?"

"Yes." He said without hesitation.

"Once, you died for me." She whispered. "But now, now you would let me die." Stefan opened his mouth, then closed it again, shocked. Katherine put a finger to his lips, silencing any protests he might have been thinking of. "I should've never let you go."

And then she was too gone, leaving Stefan feeling colder than ever.

XXXXXXXXXX

"You took a while." Damon commented hollowly. He was sitting on the floor, carving more bits of coconut out. Elena was glad. She was starved, though she wouldn't admit it.

"Couldn't find many branches." Elena said dryly, holding up a few broken off sticks pathetically. She threw them in the sand.

Damon chuckled, refusing to look at her. "Sure. Needed time to think?" he asked.

Elena swallowed nervously. "Yes. How did you-"she cut off as he raised an eyebrow. Damon always could see right through her. She arranged a couple stones in a circle and arranged a couple sticks in a teepee like fashion. She placed some of the fuzz in the middle. "What I wouldn't do for a match." She muttered. She looked at the sky, to where the sun was now rapidly declining. Island time either went by really fast, or she was in that forest for longer than she thought. She needed this fire by tonight, for warmth. There was no way she was going to snuggle up to Damon again, no matter how tempting the offer.

She picked up two of the sturdiest looking sticks and began to quickly rub them together. Damon watched her, making her more determined than ever to get that one spark.

Finally Damon carefully took the two sticks away from her, like a parent taking away an annoying toy from their child. "Unless you want to waste a day I suggest we try something easier." He said. Elena pouted and began to pick out the splinters in her hands. Damon hunted around for a while, eventually coming back with a small block of wood with a crack in half. He took one of the sticks and put some of the fluff inside the crack. Then, he took the stick and rubbed it back and forth quickly on the block, with smooth strokes.

Elena watched in fascination as he bent over his work, his brow furrowed in concentration with beads of sweat beginning to form. His muscles rippled and shone in the dying light, and she couldn't help but to feel entranced. A few minutes, or maybe hours, later, the first spark shot out. Damon hooted in triumph and renewed his speed. Another couple minutes later another spark caught, and this time embers glowed in the fluff. Damon quickly dumped it in her makeshift fireplace, where he began to blow. The embers spread and glowed, eventually erupting into a flame. Elena cheered, and the two spent the next couple minutes finding leaves and small twigs to feed into the hungry fire.

When the fire danced steadily, Elena eyed the bottles Damon had stubbornly brought with him. "I think," she said, hoping she wouldn't regret this later. "That this is a cause for celebration." Then, bending down, she snatched up a bottle and took a courageous swig.

"You sure about this?" he said carefully. Elena wasn't sure, but she felt as if there was some sort of double meaning behind those words. Like if she agreed, there would be no turning back.

"Yes," she said simply. She felt like some sort of final door had been slammed closed.

Damon's eyes lit up.

No going back now.

XXXXXXXXXX

A/N: I'm sorry. I fully intended on Damon and Elena getting drunk this chapter, but these characters had minds of their own. Plus, writing Stefan is making me strangely guilty 0.o. I love playing around with him and Katherine, though. But I'm not really sure I want them together. I love Steroline better. (All those longing looks are killing me. Seriously, Stefan?) OH. MY. GOD. So freakin excited for next episode. Damon. Elena. Dancing. Leather pants. Yay! But…whose last dance will it be?

So tell me your thoughts. Do you want to see our favorite Kat (lol at stealing the money. I seriously love her.) with the broody Stefan? What kind of drunk do you want to see Damon as? Elena? Will the cruel promo maker give us delena fans a break and actually include the scenes we see? Watch the dancing be Damon's daydream. I'll kill someone. No, I'm kidding. There probably will be a dance. But I'm pretty sure Damon will do something and go back to square one by the end of the episode. And they're dancing to Pearl Jam's Last Kiss. Love that song, but a little ominous. Oh jeez, I'm driving myself crazy. Can it be tomorrow already? :P Please review! :D


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